In a cellular radio communications system, which is operated by a specific operator, a terminal, such as a cellular phone, is required to have access to information about the specific operator in order to be able to connect to the cellular radio communication system. The information about the specific operator, or operator specific information, is included in a subscription for which the user of the terminal may pay a fee.
A known way of providing operator specific information is to install a Subscriber Identity Module card (SIM card) into a terminal, where the SIM card carries the operator specific information. Normally, a SIM card manufacturer manufactures the SIM card on request from an operator. In order for the SIM cards to be specific to the operator, the operator provides the operator specific information to the SIM card manufacturer. Thereby, the SIM card manufacturer may configure the SIM card accordingly and store the operator specific information on the SIM card during manufacturing.
When a user selects a terminal and a subscription at a retailer, it is required that the retailer has a stock of SIM cards corresponding to the operators available for selection. Hence, a problem may be that the retailer needs to order SIM cards from many different operators and then keep a stock of these SIM cards.
In order to reduce handling costs for SIM cards, it has been proposed to use a so called Machine Communication Identity Module (MCIM). The MCIM is conventionally used to establish credentials of users and terminals, such as a machine-to-machine equipment (M2ME), which is described in the 3GPP document TR 33.812. Credentials are, amongst other things, used for providing encryption keys and access rights to the terminals. When the M2ME utilizes MCIM, the M2ME can initially attach to a cellular network using a standard 3GPP radio technology. Next, the M2ME receives an initial credential or authentication message and is granted an authorization for a limited set of operations by the provider of the network to which the terminal is connected. According to TR 33.812, the M2ME then uses this limited authorization, i.e. a permission to only access a Registration Operator (RO) to trigger authentication and authorization of a connection to a Selected Home Operator (SHO), who is a provider of shared secrets, authorization certificates, and services which are attached to the subscription of the user of the terminal. When granted authorisation to do so by the SHO, these shared secrets, authorisation certificates, etc. are downloaded into a secure area of the M2ME. In this manner, the shared secret and authentication certificates can be used to authenticate and authorise the M2ME as being used under a subscription provided by the SHO via the network to which it has attached. Thanks to the provision of a special infra structure including so called Registration Operators, the M2ME may connect and select the SHO.
Even though MCIM reduces the handling of SIM cards in an efficient manner, it has not yet gained wide spread use in terminals.